Prearranged card dealing device



Jan. 19, 1954 c. PHILLIPS PREARRANGED CARD DEALING DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet1 Filed July 14. 1949 M 2 3 Wm 3 hm W I P A f s m m ,S N E m 2 w E c N SM M 2 d g m. f d 3 2 4 0 w w m m 2. 7

Jan. 19, 1954 PHILLIPS 2,666,645

' PREARRANGED CARD DEALING DEVICE Filed July 14. 1949 Y 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Clair A. Phillips INVENTOR.

Patented Jam 19, 1954 umreo stares T.

assen PR-EARRANGED'CARD DEALING DEVICE -.Clair a. Phillips, Waco, Tex.

i 7 Application July '14, 1949, SerialN0. 104,631

9 7 Claims. (01. 273-149) 1 This invention relates to new and usefulimprovements in playing cards and more particularly to-carcls used inplaying bridgegeithercon-- tract or'auction.

Oneobjectof the invention is to provide improved playing cards which arearranged to be dealt in a predetermined manner by means of an indexmember so "as to eliminate lucky distribution of the'cards and therebytes't the skill (lithe-players. I

Another object of the. invention is to provide 7 improved playing cardwhich have their loaclrs so marked that a multiplicity 'of pre-selectedbridge hands maybe obtained by -changing the index member employed;additional differentdistributions of the hands being obtained-bysubstituting a deck of cards having their markings dissimilarlyarranged.

,A particular'object of 'theinvention is to provide improved playingcards having indici'a 'displayed upon their backs in predeterminedarrangements so as to coact with any or a plurality of templates indetermining the'distributionofthe cardsto a given number of players.

An important object'of the inventionis to provid'e'a pluralityofimproved templates for use with playing cards of the characterdescribed, wherein each template has a single window or opening adaptedto be alined-with one of th indicia of each card whereby the remainingindicia are ooscured'and distribution of each of th cards may bereadilyascertained.

A further object of the invention is to pro vide improved playing cardsand templates, of the character described, "together with a holder forreceiving the'cards and one'of'the templates and having means to preventrelativemovement o'fthe template, the holder and templatebeing of lesssize than said cards so as to facilitateidea'h ingof'the latter.

A'construction designed to -carry out th invention will be hereinafterdescribed together with otherfeatures of the invention.

The invention will be more readily understood from La reading of thefollowing specification and 'by reference to the accompanying drawings,

wherein examples of the invention are shown,

and wherein:

Fig. 1 is :a plan vievv'of aplaying card, marked in accordance with theinvention,

Fig-21s a plan view'of a template constructed insacc'ordance with'theinvention,

3 is 'a perspective "view of the template and a deck'ofplaying cardsmounted in a holder, .Fig. '4 is a perspectiveview :o'f 'a slightlymodifieditemplataand holder,

2; Fig. 5 is a plan View of a modified form of template,

Fig. 6 is a'perspective view of a portion of the modified template,shown in Fig. 5, in association with a modified holder, 7

g. "7 is a plan view of a modified playing card,

.-Fig. 8 is a perspective view of frnodified template and holder,

Fig. '9lis .a'plan View of the template shown in Fig.r8,:and

Fig. 191s a transverse, sectional view, taken D11 thefline 'l0 i|0 ofFig.9.

In the drawings, the numeral 7H] designates one card of a conventionaldeck of playing cards :I l. A plurality-of index .or templates l2 andafholder ['3 are provided for dealing members the deck H in apredeterm'inedmanner, whereby'preselected bridge hands .maybe obtained.As shown in Fig. 3 and :as will .'.be 'thereinafter more fullyexplainedlthe holder 13 is :adaptedto receiv the deckof cards'andon'eofthe templates it. Instead of :the usual .designs, the-baclrl l of eachcard [6 has a -plurality .o'f indicia l5 printed or otherwise displayedthereupon and these indicia are shown in ttheform of the letters E,

S and W.'for.purposes of illustratiombut-any suitable symbol may beused. In printing the indiciathe samelare laid .outiin longitudinal andtransverse, tparallelrows [,6 and i7, respectively, and are :tclosely"spaced so-as to cover the entire area of the 'back Hi, except for itsmargin i8. Thusalarge number of indiciamay be displayed upon the back of.each card and, as shown, sufficient space is :provided for one hundredindicia on each :half .of the ;car.d. :It is :noted that the back hf"the card is divided by an imaginary transverse, .medial 3.11116 19 intotwo halves or sections 20 and :Z Landthat each section has the sameindicia t5 "arranged in longitudinal and transverse rows 15 and M,Bue-to'the identical arrangement .of theindicia'in each section, eitherend of the card "may he used in determining its destination inia givenhand;

As hasflbeenexplained, one of the indexinmhers or templates I2 isadapted to be used in dealing a rdeckiof cards marked in'accordancewithlthe'invention. It is-notedthat a separate template is usedfor-'each-"deal and that the'num her of templates which :might beemployed is dependent 1113011 the :number of indicia displayed on eachsection of the card. 'Eaeh'template is preferably :.rectangular, beingof a width substantially *equal :to one-half the length of "one ofithe'cards and 20f raslength substantially equal i to the 'width of :;saidcard, so -as to cover approximately one-half of the back of theuppermost card of the deck II when in overlying relation thereto (Fig.3). Any suitable opaque or non-transparent material may be used to formthe template. It has been found that paper board or plastic is suitablefor this purpose. A window or opening 22 is formed in the template forregistration or alinement with one of the indicia so as to expose orrender the same visible while concealing the other indicia. Although itis preferable to employ a circular opening, it is pointed out that theshape of the opening is subject to variation and that a transparentwindow could be employed. Satisfactory results are obtained when onlyone of the indicia l5 of the uppermost card is visible or is morevisible than the remaining indicia. The position of the illustratedwindow or opening 22 is such that it registers with the indicium orletter at the point of intersection of the fourth longitudinal row fromthe left with the third transverse row'from the center or top of thecard. Manifestly, other templates would have their windows or openingsat different locations. Indicia 23 are displayed upon the template todesignate the dealer, while the letters S, W, N and E are arrangedaround the opening in conformity with the position of the players whichare usually designated South, West, North and East. Since South is thedealer and the opening is alined with the letter N on the back of theuppermost card, it is readily apparent that said card would be dealt toNorth who is the player opposite the dealer. As will be explained, a substantially circular projection or enlargement 24 is formed on theright-hand, lower corner of the template for coacting with the holder i3and maintaining said template in a fixed position.

The holder may be formed of metal, plastic, wood or other suitablematerial, and includes a fiat bottom 25 of substantially the same sizeas the template. A pair of upright side walls 26 and 21 are madeintegral with or are otherwise connected to the right-hand and lower orouter margins, respectively, of the bottom 25. Thus, the inner ends ofthe side walls 25 and 21 are contiguous. If desired, the contiguous endsof the side walls may be connected by a substantially cylindrical keeperor retaining element 28 which is complementary to and adapted to receivethe projection 2 of the template. It is noted that the height of theside walls is sufficient to receive the entire deck II as well as theoverlying template. The righthand and lower edge portions of the, deckand template are adapted to engage the side walls 26 and 27,respectively, whereby displacement of the deck is prevented when theholder is firmly held in the left hand of the dealer. Due to thecoactionof the projection 24 and the retaining element 23, the templateis held in a fixed position withits opening 22 in alinement orregistration with a predetermined indicium 15 of the uppermost card.Since the arrangement of the indicia I5 is differenct on each card, itis manifest that different indicia or letters register with the openingso as to assure equal distribution of the cards among the players. Dueto the relatively small size of the holder and templates, wherebysubstantially one-half of each card is exposed, dealing of the cards isfacilitated.

As shown in Fig. 4, the retaining element of the holder may be omitted.A modified type of holder 29 is shown and includes a flat bottom 30 andupright side walls 3| and 32 similar to,

the bottom 25 and side walls 26 and 2'5 of the holder [3. The inner endsof the side walls 3| and 32 are spaced from each other to provide arecess 33 for receiving the projection or enlargement 24 of thetemplate. Obviously, the projection or enlargement may be of any desiredshape and may take the form of a substantially square tongue 34 providedon the right-hand, inner or lower corner of a modified template 35. Awindow or opening 36, similar to the opening 22, is formed in thetemplate 35 and is located at a different position, being adjacent thetongue 34. The modified forms of holder and templates are used in thesame manner as the template l2 and holder l3, the tongue 34 engaging inthe re cess 33 in overlying relation to a deck of cards for maintainingsaid modified template in a fixed position. It is noted that theposition of the projection or enlargement of the template is subject tovariation. As shown in Figs. 5 and 6, a T-shaped tongue 3? may be formedon one of the margins of a template 38, such as the righ hand margin. Arecess or slot as is provided in the right-hand side wall 48 of a holder42 for receiving the neck or reduced portion of the tongue 31. The innerend of the right-hand side wall merges with or is connected to a sidewall 43, similar to the side walls 21 and 32.

As stated hereinbefore, the form of the indicia displayed on the back ofthe playing card is subject to variation. A modified playing card 44having indicia in the form of arrows 35 on its back is shown in Fig. 7.With the exception of the indicia, the card 44 is identical to the cardl0 and is adapted to be dealt in the same manner by means of a templateand bolder. Although it would be difficult for a person to memorize thearrangement of a plurality of letters or numbers upon a multiplicity ofcards, it would be much more difficult, if not impossible, to memorizethe arrangement of the arrows 45, or other symbols of a similar nature.

Instead of the projections or tongues 24, t l and 3'! and the coactingretaining element 23 or recesses 33 and 39, other means of maintainingthe template in a fixed position relative to the holder may be employed.In Fig. 8, a holder ll, substantially identical to the holder i3, isshown and includes a similar flat bottom 43 and upright side walls 49and St. The inner ends of the walls 49 and 50 may be connected by asubstantially cylindrical retaining element 5| similar to the retainingelement 28. An upright pin 52 is axiallydisposed within the element 5|and is adapted to be engaged by a complementary eye 53 carried by thesubstantially circular projection or tongue 5 of a template 55. As ismost clearly shown in Fig. 9, the template 55 has a window or opening56, similar to the opening l5, for registration with one of the indiciaIE or 45. The eye 53 may be in the form of a grommet as shown in Fig.10. Due to the coaction of the pin and eye, it is manifest that theretaining element 5! and tongue 54 are unnecessary for the purpose ofmaintaining the template 55 in a fixed position relative to the holder41.

From the foregoing, it is readily apparent that an economical, simplemeans has been provided for obtaining pre-arranged and pre-selcctedbridge hands without the necessity of sorting the cards. It is desirablethat the pre-selected hands be played and analyzed by experts in advanceand that the analysis be furnished to the players after completion ofthe play, whereby said players may determine whether they correctly bidand plates and holder may be used with any number.

of decks marked in accordance with the invention. These other deckswould have the same or similar indicia arranged in difierent orders soas to provide distributions of the cards entirely different from thatobtained with the deck i I.

The foregoing description of the invention is explanatory thereof andvarious changes in the size, shape and materials, as well as in thedetails of the illustrated construction may be made, within the scope ofthe appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with a template having a single opening therein at apredetermined position, a holder for receiving the template, a deck ofplaying cards, each card-having indicia on its back arranged in apredetermined manner so as to indicate a plurality of possibledestinations,

the cards being insertable in the holder beneath 4 opening for denotingthe destination of said card,

and a lateral projection on said template, said holder having a recessfor receiving the lateral projection to detachably connect said templateto said holder and an open top to permit insertion of the cards andtemplate from above, said template being substantially square andone-half the size of said cards so as'to overlie one end portion andexpose the other end portion of said cards and facilitate dealingthereof.

2. The combination set forth in claim 1 wherein the holder is ofsubstantially the same size as the template to facilitate holding of thecards and holder during dealing.

3. In combination with a deck of playing cards, each card having indiciaon its back in a predetermined arrangement for indicating itsdistribution, indicia on some of the cards being difierent from indiciaon other cards, a plate adapted to overlie the uppermost card and havinga single opening so as to conceal all exceptone of the indicia on theback of the uppermost card, a holder for receiving thedeck and plate,the

holder havinga bottom wall and a pair of upright Walls on its adjacentmargins for engaging adjacent edge portions of said cards and plate toaline the same, the remaining margins and top of said holder being opento facilitate insertion and dealing of said cards, and means detachably'connecting said plate to said holder in overlying relation to said cardsand adjacent said open top.

w 4. In combination, a relativelyflat holder rectangular in shape havinga pair of adjacent,

cards whereby a Portion of the back of the upper- I most card is exposedbeyond the holder and may be grasped for ready removal through the opensides of said holder, each card having indicia on its back side, atemplate inserted in said holder upon the uppermost card and concealingone end portion of said card, the template having a single openinglocated to expose a single indicium on the underlying card to indicateits destination, and a single projection on said template engaging awall of the holder to retain said template when a card is slid fromthereunder.

5. The combination set forth in claim 4, wherein the template hasindicia disposed around its opening, one of which indicia coincides andcoacts with the card indicium exposed through said opening to determinethe destination of the card.

6. In combination with a deck of playing cards, each card having indiciaon its back in a predetermined arrangement for indicating itsdestination in accordance with a pre-selected distribution, the indiciabeing regularly spaced, a template adapted to overlie the cards andhaving a window for registration with one of the indicia of theuppermost card so as to expose said indicium and indicate thedestination of said card, a holder having an open top for receiving theplaying cards and template, and an upright pin beyond'the margin of theholder supported thereby, the template having an eye beyond its marginfor receiving the pin to detachably connect said template to said holderand permit insertion of cards from above.

7. In combination with a template having a single opening therein at apredetermined position, a holder for receiving the template, a deck ofplaying cards, each card having indicia on its back arranged in apredetermined manner so as to indicate a plurality ofv possibledestinations, indicia on some of the cards being difierent from indiciaon other cards, the cards being ins'ertable in the holder beneath saidtemplate so as to aline one of the indicia of the uppermost card withthe template opening and render said indicium visible through saidopening for denoting the destination of said card, and concealing otherindicia. on said card, and means for detachably securing said templateto said holder inoverlying relation to said deck and in a predeterminedposition relative thereto, said template being substantially square andone-half the size of said cards so as to overlie one end portion andexpose cards and facilitate the other end portion of said dealingthereof.

CLAIR A. PHILLIPS.

- References Cited in the file of this patent V UNITED STATES PATENTS

